24 January, 2008

FERRY operators NorthLink yesterday (Wednesday) announced their annual refit schedule for their northern isles fleet, which will disrupt their Shetland service.

The ferries Hjaltland and Hrossey which service Lerwick, Kirkwall and Aberdeen will receive an in-water survey between 12 and 22 February.

The Hamnavoe, which works between Stromness and Scrabster, will be in dry dock in Fredericia, Denmark, between 13 and 29 April. Among other works, a planned fuel system modification will allow the vessel to run on low sulphur MF40 fuel, as currently used in NorthLink’s freighters Hascosay and Clare.

The Shetland service will be reduced to alternate days during both re-fit periods, but the company hopes to avoid affecting the Shetland Folk Festival, which was shortened by a day due to last year’s work schedule, when new cabins were installed. They also promise daily freight departures for commercial vehicles.

NorthLink chief executive Bill Davidson said the company tried to minimise disruption by scheduling refit work at the quietest time of year.

“The dates now fixed have it slotted between the end of the school holidays and the start of the Shetland Folk Festival – an event we were very keen not to impinge upon this year.

“While we recognise that this will mean two separate periods of disruption on the Lerwick-Aberdeen route, the total time out of service is less than would normally be required and considerably shorter than last year when extensive work was required to introduce new cabin accommodation,” he said.

“While we have tried to keep the affected sailings clear of bookings, any unavoidable last-minute changes on the dry-dock timings may mean that some passengers will not be able to travel as booked.

“However, our customer service staff will work to ensure all are contacted and travel re-arranged. The new timetables will be widely advertised in the island press and on the NorthLink website. Customer service staff can be contacted on 0845 600 449,” he said.

Last year, NorthLink conducted successful berthing trials with Hjaltland at Scrabster and Stromness in order to establish whether the slightly larger vessel could operate at both locations.